Dracula and Graveyards
by Insane Troll Logic
Summary: Ficlet set pre BtVS: Jesse had always believed in vampires...


**Title**- Dracula and graveyards  
**Rating**- PG  
**Characters**- Jesse, Xander, Willow  
**Spoilers**- Minor for "The Harvest"  
**Author's Note-** This only took me fifteen minutes to write so yes, it's short, yes it's a stand alone. It's probably not my best story ever, but I figured why not just go ahead and post it. For those of you who don't remeber, Jesse was Xander and Willow's friend from the first two episodes.

Any feedback would be great.

Enjoy.

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**_Dracula and Graveyards_**

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Jesse had always believed in vampires. Not to mention witches and demons and zombies. He'd been that way since he was six. Him and Xander would sneak down to watch monster movies on TV while Willow cowered under the blankets. They'd laugh and throw popcorn at the screaming people and shout at them to 'look behind you!' although they never ever listened.  
  
Yes, from those early days on the couch he had known that there had to be demons out there. It was an excuse for him more than anything. When his uncle Gerald had died he's figured that it'd had been the vampires. That was the only explanation. He went so far as to tell his theory to his mom who'd whacked him on the back of the head and told him not to be stupid.  
  
He never told her anything like that again. He didn't want another whack in the back of the head, the thing hurt. He told Xander his theory and he said "Could be", he told Willow and she said that Gerald had died of a heart attack. Not vampires at all. She said that he should pay attention when his parents explained things to him.  
  
For years after that he figured that it'd be best not to let his theory out, instead, he kept them to himself cutting out news stories that looked odd.  
  
When he was ten he saw one. A vampire. He'd walked that route a hundred times alone and at least a hundred more with his mom. The way to Willow's house was past one of the cemeteries. It had never bothered him at all. You had to go by a cemetery to get almost anywhere in Sunnydale. But that day was different, that day there was someone in the graveyard.  
  
Jesse went to check it out only to find a grave with half a body sticking out of it. He bent down to examine it, curious despite his terror.  
  
The body was still until he had his face right up to it and then it jerked its head up and Jesse got a clear look at it's disfigured face and yellow eyes. He stumbled back and sprinted out of the graveyard and reached Willow's house a minute later.  
  
The door was unlocked, and Jesse flung it open without ringing the bell and slammed it shut behind him, he sank to the floor.  
  
Willow and Xander came over a second later.  
  
"Oh my god, Jesse! What happened?"  
  
He was chalk white and looked up at the two of them remembering what people had said to him about his crazy ideas, he stood up slowly and took a breath. "Nothing."  
  
Xander raised an eyebrow. "Are you sure?"  
  
"It's all good." Jesse lied through clenched teeth.  
  
Xander shrugged and held out two movies. "In that case, you're the tiebreaker. Sappy Chick flick or Dracula."  
  
Out of habit more than anything he pointed towards Dracula. Xander smiled as he went to put it on. Willow frowned. "You two always outvote me."  
  
"You're the one who pushes for democracy."  
  
"It works with government!"  
  
"See Wills. Majority rule. Game over. Dracula time." Xander shot a grin at Jesse who returned it weakly.  
  
They started the movie. Laughed at the special effects, ragged on Willow for screaming, threw popcorn at each other. And come daybreak, Jesse found himself alone in the cemetery. There was a fresh grave where he had seen the vampire. Not disturbed one bit. He had been expecting to find something more.  
  
Jesse exhaled the breath he hadn't realized he was holding. He'd imagined the whole thing. If there were really vampires, what would they be doing in Sunnydale anyway?  
  
Little, by little he went through his collection of articles.  
  
_Gerald McNally- was running through a back alley and died from a heart attack.  
  
Dillon Parker- Got involved with a gang and ended up in pieces.  
  
Nicole Jacoby- Had her grave robbed  
  
Sydney King- fell on a barbeque fork_  
  
They all had an explanation, an explaination that was not at all supernatural. There weren't vampires here at all.  
  
And that's what he believed right up until the day they killed him.


End file.
